Handicap
by Eosophobia-3
Summary: Set somewhere in the latest series. Hiccup and the group must make their way to the other side of Berk as a training exercise set by Stoick. However, they each have a handicap to make things difficult. Fun, humour, some angst (but very little) and general craziness ensues!
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter One: Handicap**

A soft breeze drifted through the valley, ruffling Hiccup's dark hair as he stood beside his closest companion, the Night Fury, Toothless. The black dragon nuzzled closer to his human, a soft purr emanating from its throat. Hiccup patted Toothless' head and turned to look at the rest of the group; the dragon trainers had returned to Berk for a few days to collect some supplies and Hiccup's father, Stoick, had decided to grasp the chance to do some training of his own with them. The Viking stood at the front of the group, long auburn beard rustling in the wind and his ever-faithful companion Gobber by his side.

Ruffnut and Tuffnut were perched atop their dragon, Barf and Belch, and were currently deciding who had the longest tongue as they pulled obscure faces at one another. Snotlout was arguing profusely with Hookfang, who seemed to be enjoying setting his trainer's tunic on fire. Next to the squabbling pair, Fishlegs and Meatlug were both enjoying a snack; the Viking picking at berries on a nearby bush and his dragon devouring every boulder in sight. Astrid and Stormfly were beside Hiccup and Toothless, the former sitting on the blue Deadly Nadder as it sat patiently.

"Okay," Stoick finally spoke up, his bellowing voice easily reaching the trainers, "Time to let you know what's happening."

He turned to Gobber, who had just finished screwing on his hooked hand, and gestured for him to speak.

"Right, yes," Gobber cleared his throat and continued, "Well, today we have some extra tricky training for the six of you," Toothless made a soft whining sound and Gobber corrected himself, "Sorry, _twelve_ of you. You'll be-"

"-Does that mean our dragon counts as two?" Tuffnut interjected.

"It _does_ have two heads," Ruffnut continued.

"Fine!" Gobber sighed, " _Eleven_ of you."

"Does that mean _we_ only count as one?" Tuffnut looked at his sister, disgusted at the thought.

"Gross!" Ruffnut slapped her brother's helmet and it spun wildly, "I don't want to be associated with you!"

"Look, everyone counts as themselves, okay!" Hiccup shook his head tiredly, "Can we just find out what Gobber has to say, please?"

The twins started to bat at each other's helmets but Gobber continued nonetheless.

"As I was saying, you'll be doing some extra tricky training today. You'll each have to make your way to the other side of the island, collecting three items each along your way."

"Ha!" Snotlout scoffed, "Easy! Hookfang and I could do that with our ears closed!"

"Don't you mean 'eyes'?" Astrid asked.

"Eyes, ears, we'll close everything! We're that good."

Gobber ignored the ever-enthusiastic Snotlout, "There'll be some obstacles along the way, courtesy of some wild dragons, and some surprises. So keep on your toes!"

"And," Stoick's bellows filled the clearing once again, "You'll each have a handicap. To make things interesting."

Tuffnut slapped a hand to his helmet, "But I don't want a cap, I like my helmet!" His sister nodded in agreement as Gobber stepped up to each rider.

Once beside the twins, he pulled out a length of cotton from his pocket and handed it to Ruffnut. She looked at it blankly.

"Tie that around your brother's eyes," Gobber ordered.

Barf leaned closer to Belch and Ruff did just that, enjoying it all the while, leaving Tuff completely blind.

"You will have to guide Tuffnut as you make your way across the island and you, Tuffnut, will have to trust your sister completely.

"Who said that?" Tuff flailed his arms wildly and flopped off Belch onto the ground with a grunt.

Next was Fishlegs. Gobber instructed him that he could not ride Meatlug for the duration of the exercise much to Fishlegs' horror. His dragon, however, seemed quite content with the idea of having a break from carrying the chunky lad as he chomped on another boulder.

Gobber moved on to Snotlout and Hookfang.

"Whatever it is, we'll deal with it," Snotlout stuck out his chest and grinned widely.

"You, Snotlout, cannot get _off_ your dragon until you reach the other side."

Hookfang's lip curled, showing his sharp teeth, and Snotlout's grin faded a little. They weren't exactly known for their perfect relationship and he was not looking forward to having the angry Monstrous Nightmare attached to him at all times.

Astrid and Stormfly looked confident as Gobber stepped closer to them. Astrid knew there was nothing she and her dragon couldn't handle.

"You two will have no weapons." Gobber held out his hand and Astrid handed over her trusty axe, as well as a few daggers and a small slingshot she'd been keeping in her boot.

"That's not too bad," Astrid flicked her hair over her shoulder and patted Stormfly's head, "At least we still have your attacks."

"Afraid not, Miss," Gobber shook his head, "As far as this mission is concerned, Stormfly has no arsenal, understand?"

The blonde girl pouted but nodded her head nonetheless.

Finally, Gobber hobbled over to where Toothless and Hiccup were standing. He seemed to glance back at Stoick as though to ask permission for something and then held out his one hand to the boy. Hiccup raised an eyebrow and looked at Toothless before turning back to Gobber.

"What?"

"Hand it over, Hiccup."

"Hand what over?"

Silently, Gobber looked down at Hiccup's leg with an almost apologetic look in his eyes. Hiccup's eyes bulged and he jumped back.

"My leg?! But I can't walk without it! _And_ I can't fly Toothless!"

"That's kind of the point, Hiccup."

"Isn't there something else?" Hiccup looked almost frightened as he looked from Gobber to his father and back again, "Maybe you could tie my hands behind my back or something?"

Stoick slapped a heavy hand to his son's shoulder, "This exercise is to help you know how to cope when you're helpless. You'll get it back when you're done."

Sighing, Hiccup leaned on Toothless and untied his metal foot. He hopped awkwardly and handed it to Gobber reluctantly as Toothless steadied him. Astrid looked down at Hiccup from her place atop Stormfly and gave him a reassuring smile. It didn't help, however, as Snotlout was almost falling off Hookfang as he guffawed, tears streaming down his face.

"Oh, this is priceless! Someone hand me some charcoal, I need to capture this moment forever!"

"Alright!" Stoick opened his arms, "Now that you're all prepared I'll show you what you need to find on your way across the island." He held out three small wooden discs, "You each have to collect three of these discs with your dragon's symbol on them and bring them to me on the other side. If you don't have all three when you reach me, I'll send you back until you do! Understood?"

"Um, what discs?" Tuffnut wobbled across the clearing, straight into a tree as Ruffnut giggled manically.

"And remember," Gobber chimed in, "This isn't a race! It's training!"

"Yeah right," Snotlout kicked his legs and Hookfang raised into the air, "See you on the other side, losers!"

Fishlegs patted Meatlug's hide and started to stroll towards the treeline, "Come on, girl. Slow and steady wins the race."

"Tuff!" Ruffnut squawked from atop Barf as her brother stumbled towards the sound of her voice, "This way, idiot!"

"Which way?!" Tuff's shoulders slumped and he tilted his head to try and hear his sister more clearly.

"OVER HERE!" Barf cringed back as his rider's voice echoed in his ears.

"Alright," Tuff stopped moving and positioned himself in the direction he believed his sister was in. Then, without another thought, he charged, full speed, across the clearing. Thankfully he ran into his dragon before he ran into a tree and bounced backwards onto his rear. He got to his feet and raised his hands triumphantly, "Yes! I knew that would work! Belch, lift me up!"

Belch did just that and finally the twins were on their way, albeit a little lopsidedly.

"Okay, Stormfly, let's go!" the Deadly Nadder rose silently into the air, "Good luck, Hiccup!" And with that, Astrid was speeding off, into the trees.

Hiccup turned to Toothless, resting his weight on the dragon, "Okay, bud. We can do this."

Without thinking, Hiccup went to mount his dragon and put weight on a leg that was no longer there. He flopped to the ground heavily and stared up into bright green eyes that were highly concerned.

"Well, that was dumb."

Not without difficulty, Hiccup managed to perch himself on Toothless precariously and was quite pleased with his accomplishment. He inhaled deeply and held on tightly to the reigns.

"Okay, bud, let's go."

Not used to his rider being so unstable, Toothless bounded forward and flapped his wings, ready to take flight. Hiccup bounced around on his back like a rag doll, the strap for his prosthetic leg dangled uselessly beside the empty space where his foot should have been and he tried to shout over the furiously beating wings,

"Whoa! We can't fly like this, bud!"

Pleading green eyes turned back to look at Hiccup and a low rumbling vibrated along Toothless' spine. He flapped his wings once more but quickly understood that it was a useless gesture, finally giving in and walking slowly towards the treeline.

Once all of the riders were out of sight, Gobber turned to Stoick, "Do you think we were a little too harsh?"

"Nonsense!" Stoick slapped his friend's back and nodded firmly, as though trying to convince himself as well as his companion, "They'll be just fine."


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two: Tight Spaces**

Snotlout leaned back, arms behind his head as Hookfang swooped and soared over the forest below. Both dragon and rider seemed quite content and, for once, Snotlout thought that maybe he and the dragon would get along, at least for a little while. He leaned over Hookfang's horns and spotted something shimmering near a stream through the trees.

"Look, Hookfang! That must be where the first disc is! Ha! In your face, Hiccup!"

The Monstrous Nightmare dived quickly and landed beside the flowing water's edge, taking a quick drink as he did so. Snotlout leaned down, careful not to actually get off the dragon, and picked up what had been catching the sunlight. It was a piece of iron with his family crest etched onto it and an arrow. An arrow that pointed directly to a nearby cave carved into the rock face.

"It must be in there!" He pointed towards the dark opening of the cave, "Hookfang, forward!"

Smoke wafted from the dragon's nostrils and he turned lazily back to the water to continue hydrating. Snotlout bucked his legs and pulled on the dragon's horns to no avail.

"Move it! We need to get to the other side first!" Hookfang rolled his eyes and slowly turned towards the cave, "That's it! Stupid dragon."

Once at the mouth of the cave, however, Snotlout soon realised that his 'handicap' may actually cause him some trouble. The cave entrance was about half the size of Hookfang; no way was the Monstrous Nightmare going to fit into it to retrieve the disc and, as Snotlout couldn't dismount him, he'd have to think of another way to get the disc.

* * *

The sun was high in the sky as Fishlegs and Meatlug walked through the trees. They were denser here as they were nearing the centre of the forest and it was difficult to see if they were going in the right direction, especially since Fishlegs wasn't able to get on Meatlug and hover above the trees.

The Gronckle was standing by a rather large oak tree that seemed to reach right up to Valhalla itself, looking upwards into the branches.

"What is it, girl?"

Fishlegs followed his companion's gaze and his eyes rested upon something lodged in a branch about twenty feet above them. It was the disc with the Gronckle symbol on it.

"Okay, girl," Fishlegs pointed towards the disc, "Fetch!"

For a moment he thought that Meatlug hadn't understood him as she simply stared back with vacant eyes but, eventually, she began to hover towards the disc.

"That's it, girl! Grab that disc!"

Meatlug hovered as close as she could to the branch but her jaws were just too large to get a grip on the disc itself. If Fishlegs had been able to sit on her, he would have easily been able to snatch the disc from the tree and it was frustrating knowing that he was so close yet so far from the prize. Meatlug landed beside him and he gave her a reassuring scratch under the chin.

"That's okay, we'll just have to think of something else."

* * *

Meanwhile, high up in the sky above the mountains, the twins were getting dizzy. They'd been spinning for almost twenty minutes, round and round as Barf and Belch got more and more confused. Ruff had been trying to guide Tuff towards a flock of sheep but her instructions had been less than accurate and even harder to follow and so Belch had no clear idea of where it was he was supposed to go.

"Down!" Ruffnut pointed as she grew more and more impatient with her brother, "We need to go down! I can see a disc strapped to that sheep right there!"

"Which way's down?!" Tuff held on tightly to Belch's horns as the dragon's wings flapped wildly, once again sending them into a spin.

"I'm gonna throw up!" Ruff gasped.

"Me too!" Tuff slapped a hand to his mouth.

"Awesome!" They shouted in unison.

Above him, Hiccup could see the Zippleback spinning furiously, resembling a Typhoomerang as its heads almost connected with its tails over and over. He was getting dizzy just _looking_ at it. Hiccup wasn't having much luck either; it was a slow process, sitting on Toothless' back as he walked through the trees, careful not to knock his trainer off or jostle him too much. The dragon seemed to know that the human wasn't in the greatest of moods.

Hiccup leaned back, resting his hands further back on Toothless' spine, and looked up towards the cliff face they were approaching. He shaded his eyes with his hand and followed the cliff right to the top where he spotted a small round disc wedged on a sapling on the edge of the cliff.

"Oh, great," his shoulders slumped, "How are we supposed to get up there?"

Before he could start formulating a plan, his hair was swept around his head as Stormfly flew above him; Astrid held out the disc she'd already retrieved and waved it proudly as she shouted down to the one-legged lad.

"I'm going for the second one before nightfall! How about you?"

"Err," Hiccup pointed to the disc at the top of the cliff, "We're working on it!"

"Well, good luck!" With that, Astrid and Stormfly swooped higher into the air, easily passing the disc atop the cliff as Hiccup and Toothless watched helplessly form the ground.

"Come on, bud," Hiccup patted Toothless' head and they started towards the cliff face in the hopes that somehow Hiccup could think of something other than 'jump and hope for the best'.

* * *

Back next to the stream, Snotlout and Hookfang were in a slight predicament; the trainer had ordered his dragon into the cave and now the Monstrous Nightmare was stuck, head-first in the rock-face.

"Well this is just perfect," Snotlout squinted into the darkness surrounding him, "Give me a little light, Hookfang."

A soft glow started to emanate from the dragon's skin, giving the cave a warm luminosity and enough light that Snotlout could see the wooden disc in front of them. It was about five feet from Hookfang's snout.

"Can't you squeeze your fat butt any further in?"

Hookfang took offense to the jibe and started flailing his head around wildly, almost knocking Snotlout to the ground. He held on tight, however, and started to shimmy along the dragon's neck, further towards his head. Careful not to stand in Hookfang's eyes, Snotlout perched himself on his snout and reached out for the disc. He could almost reach it, his fingertips just missing each time he swept his hand near.

"Come on, just a little closer!"

Hookfang stuck out his forked tongue and allowed his trainer to step onto it, albeit very carefully, and finally Snotlout managed to grab the disc.

"Woohoo! Yes!"

Hookfang pulled his tongue back in briskly with a look of disgust, sending Snotlout into the air momentarily and then back down hard onto the horn on Hookfang's nose. The sound that escaped Snotlout's mouth was closer to dragon than human; a high-pitched howl of agony as the spiked horn pierced his rear end. Thankfully, the echoes of his yell dislodged a few rocks in the cave wall and Hookfang was able to back up, out of the cave.

As the pair re-emerged into the fading sunlight, Fishlegs and Meatlug spotted them. They'd stopped for a drink at the stream after their ordeal with their first disc and Snotlout waved his own in Fishlegs' face.

"Boom! Disc number one! I'd like to see you do better, Fishface!"

"Oh," Fishlegs reached into his satchel and pulled out his own disc, "We got ours about an hour ago." He smiled at Snotlout's open mouthed stare, "Meatlug rammed into a tree and knocked it free. She's such a clever girl."

"Whatever," the dark-haired boy waved a dismissive hand and tugged on Hookfang's horns, "Come on, let's go get the other discs and win this stupid thing!"

* * *

"Okay, bud, let's give this a go."

Hiccup held on tightly to Toothless' saddle as the black Night Fury began to ascend the cliff face. His tail swished, balancing him as he leapt from rock to rock, and his claws scrambled for something to hold on to as more and more of the cliff face gave way beneath his weight. Without realising he had done so, Hiccup's eyes were squeezed shut and it was only when it felt like they were no longer attached to the rocks that he opened them. Fortunately Toothless still had his claws embedded deeply in the sheer rock but he was slipping more and more as they climbed higher.

Hiccup could see the disc now, almost within reaching distance, and he stretched his arms to try and grab it. It was no use, Toothless was moving too much and he only had one foot to balance himself with.

"Just a little higher, bud!"

They were almost there. The ground below seemed miles away as the one-legged Viking looked over his shoulder and it seemed as though Toothless could sense this too; he kept trying to flap his wings to fly, feeling that the sky was closer, but of course with nothing to support his tail it was a futile effort. The dragon's jaws snapped, rocks crumbling around them as Hiccup reached further for the disc.

That was when the stampede of sheep started towards them.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three: Nightfall**

"Where did it go?!" Ruffnut scratched her head as she and Tuffnut hovered above the sheep on the top of the cliff, "The disc was strapped to one of them I swear!" She squinted down at the panicking sheep, terrified by the hovering Zippleback, and spotted the disc with their symbol on it. "There!"

Barf began to swoop towards the sheep but, as Tuffnut was still blindfolded, Belch remained stationary and the dragon lurched forward. It flopped heavily into the small field, sending the sheep fleeing in panic in a mess of wool and legs.

"It's right next to you!" Ruff tugged on her pigtails as the sheep with the disc scrambled past her brother.

Tuff grabbed wildly at the air and managed to snag a sheep, "Did I get it?!"

"No!"

He repeated the process a further three times, each time grabbing the same sheep as before. Ruffnut dragged her hand down her face and groaned, impatient and annoyed at her twin's lack of sight.

"I'll get it!"

Tuff seemed to take offense at that and started running in all directions, sending the sheep into a frenzy. They charged towards the only escape, the edge of the cliff, and Tuffnut followed the sounds of their stampeding feet and terrified baas.

Hiccup heard the sheep before he saw them and, once he had in fact set his eyes upon the fluffy creatures, it was too late. They flooded over the edge of the cliff like a waterfall of wool, most of them landing safely in the treetops, others spiralling down onto the grass in a heap of fluff. Toothless lost his grip. The Night Fury scrambled, clawing at the rocks as he and his rider slid away from their disc. That was the least of Hiccup's worries, however, as Toothless completely lost his traction on the rock face and pushed away from it with his wings. Automatically, Hiccup kicked his leg to stable the dragon's tail but without his foot nothing happened. They began to plummet towards the ground at an alarming speed, Toothless flapping his black wings furiously as he tried to fly.

"This is bad," Hiccup breathed as they continued their descent.

"Hey, Hiccup!" Ruff had her hands cupped over her mouth as she yelled from on top of Barf as the dragon flapped high above, "Do me a favour?"

"Kind of busy right now, Ruff!"

"Oh…" Ruff seemed dejected as she shrugged her shoulders, "I was just going to ask if you could catch Tuffnut for me."

"Catch…?"

Beside Hiccup, Tuffnut was freefalling through the air, blindfold still around his eyes. He didn't seem too panicked about it as his face held a kind of tranquil look. Hiccup's eyes bulged and Toothless just looked extremely confused as he continued to feebly flap his wings.

"Wow," Tuffnut sighed contentedly, "Belch has _never_ flown this smoothly before."

"Um, Tuff?" Hiccup grabbed the blonde's helmet and yanked him onto the still-falling Toothless, "You weren't on Belch."

"Oh… Was I on a sheep? Because it was a _great_ flyer."

Hiccup mumbled something under his breath and returned his attention to their impending death. Toothless was slowing their descent by flapping his wings but they were still going to collide too hard with the ground. Hiccup had to think of _something_ to slow them further.

"Not to be a moaning Ruffnut, but are we still falling?" Tuffnut held on tightly to Hiccup's waist, "This rescue doesn't seem to be working very well."

"I can't slow us down! We're going to crash!"

Suddenly, with a thud that made Hiccup's very bones vibrate, they stopped falling. He squinted his eyes to see what damage his poor dragon had taken only to realise that they hadn't hit the ground at all, they'd landed on Barf and Belch.

Ruffnut smirked from her perch atop Barf and slowly lowered them all to the ground.

"I was tempted to let you fall to see what sort of pattern you'd make, you know like ink. Maybe if I saw something in it I'd know my future or something." She shrugged nonchalantly, "But then I remembered I don't care."

"Did we die?" Tuff stumbled off of Toothless' back and lurched forward, arms out.

"No!" Hiccup patted Toothless' head and smiled, "Thanks, Ruff!"

"No problemo," she was more interested in what she'd just plucked from her ear.

Toothless was sniffing at something on the ground; he pawed at it gently and then cooed to get Hiccup's attention. The dragon trainer hopped down from his dragon awkwardly and picked up the small object Toothless had found. It was their first disc, it must have fallen when the sheep fell from the cliff.

"Good job, bud!"

Beside them, Tuff was reaching a hand down his pants. He looked almost pained as he scraped and scratched, trying to dislodge something that wasn't supposed to be there.

"Um, Tuff? You okay there?"

The twin nodded, "Sure, fine. There's just something… Here!" He pulled his hand free and, strangely, the disc with the Zippleback symbol etched onto it.

"I do not want to know how that got there," Hiccup shuddered as Ruffnut high-fived her twin. Well, it _would_ have been a high-five if he could see anything but, as he was currently sightless, it was more of a high-face.

"So now what?" Ruffnut asked as she held onto her brother's hair to stop him wandering off.

"It's getting pretty dark," Hiccup gestured to the purple sky as a rumble of thunder sounded, "We should probably find somewhere to camp for the night.

* * *

Inside the cave in which Snotlout and Hookfang had been stuck earlier, Astrid and Fishlegs were setting up a fire. Astrid had been looking for somewhere to spend the night and had seen the glow of Meatlug's lava from the sky. It seemed like as good a place as any to set up camp and so they'd agreed to share the cave, which was much more spacious further into the mountain. They were just about to start roasting some fish when a hungry Night Fury bounded up to the fire, tongue lolling out.

"Toothless!" Astrid patted his head and threw him a fish before looking behind him, "Where's Hiccup?"

"I'm here!"

His voice echoed through the cave until he finally came into view, the light from the fire illuminating his face. He was leaning on the twins, using them as crutches as he hopped along looking exhausted.

Tuffnut sniffed the air noisily, "Do I smell mutton?"

"Cod, actually," Fishlegs corrected.

Tuffnut shrugged, "Eh, same animal." He crossed his legs and sat beside Fishlegs with his mouth open, ready to receive a morsel of the sweet-smelling fish.

"You know," Astrid gestured to Tuffnut's blindfold, "I think you can take that off when you're not on the mission."

"Ha! You think I'd fall for that?!"

"Yeah," Ruff plonked herself down beside her brother, "We'd forfeit if he took that off, we know that!"

"Okay, whatever you say."

Astrid watched as Hiccup leaned on Toothless and slid down onto the dusty floor. He looked less than pleased at his current situation and the Night Fury seemed to know, always attuned with his rider. Toothless purred lightly and nuzzled Hiccup's cheek with his own but then became more interested in the fish Ruffnut was waving around her brother's head. Before Tuff could figure out where it was, Toothless snatched it from Ruff and swallowed it whole.

"Hey!" Tuff scrambled on his hands and knees and reached out for Toothless, "Give that back you fiend!"

His reply was a sort of gurgling chuckle from the black dragon but Tuffnut had no time to retaliate as something was glowing at the entrance to the cave. Moments later a squishing, squelching sound started to get closer and closer to the group, followed by a low moaning.

Astrid jumped to her feet, fists balled up and ready to smash something if the need arose. Fishlegs and Meatlug huddled together, the twins continued their fish battle and Hiccup was still struggling to get up when the dripping creature came into view by the fire. Of course, it wasn't a creature at all, just Snotlout who'd apparently been caught in the sudden downpour outside. Hookfang's head poked into the cave, his body blocking the view of whatever storm was arising outside, as Snotlout tried to get warm by the fire.

"Hey! You got off your dragon! That's cheating!" Ruffnut poked her brother for back up and he proceeded to glare menacingly at Stormfly, mistaking her for Snotlout.

"It is not!" Snotlout sniffled and wiped his hand across his nose, "I'm allowed to get off him when we're not looking for the disc, Muttonhead!"

Fishlegs took another bite of fish and handed the rest to Meatlug before turning to Snotlout, "I thought you were heading further to get the second disc?" He looked almost smug as he spoke, knowing that Snotlout must have had to turn back.

"Yeah, well," the dripping lad took off his helmet and poured the water from it beside the fire, "The storm got too severe to continue. And Hookfang doesn't like getting wet." The Monstrous Nightmare grumbled from his place at the cave entrance to reiterate his rider's words.

"Okay," Hiccup lay down and pulled one of Toothless' wings over himself like a blanket, "Let's just try and get some rest for now. Who knows what'll be in store for us tomorrow."

As the six dragon riders and their dragons began to fall into a restless sleep, the rain continued to pour and the river began to rise…


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter Four: The Night's Fury**

It had been almost three hours since the group had finally fallen asleep; the constant pouring of the rain and rumbling of thunder high above had woken the dragons a few times but they had finally settled as the moon rose high into the night sky. Fishlegs rolled over only to find that Meatlug was no longer by his side and opened his bleary eyes to see where his dragon had got to. He spotted her pacing alongside the sleeping Hookfang, moaning and chomping her huge jaws impatiently.

"What's up girl?" Fishlegs stepped over to the Gronckle and patted her head only to find it wet.

He looked up at the roof of the cave and found that it was dripping. Not only that, but his feet were wet, too. Water was rapidly flowing in from the flooded river outside, filling the cave at a steady pace as the rest of the group slept.

"Oh, Thor," Fishlegs waded back to the now dwindling fire, water starting to fill his boots, and shook Astrid's shoulder, "Astrid, wake up!"

The blonde opened her eyes slowly and yawned, "What is it?"

Fishlegs gestured to the rising water and Astrid sprang into motion; she woke up the twins and Snotlout, who jolted awake shouting something about eels, and then finally Hiccup. Hiccup stretched his arms and looked around groggily as he wondered what all of the commotion was about.

"What is it?" Tuffnut tightened his blindfold and flapped his hands around his shins as the water rose above his knees, "Where are we? Did the cave float into the sea?"

"No, idiot," Snotlout hopped onto Hookfang's neck as the Monstrous Nightmare splashed around clumsily in the water, "The river must be flooding in."

"Hiccup," Astrid was trying to calm Stormfly as she spoke, "What should we do?"

Another clap of thunder shook the cave.

"Well the first thing we should do is get out of here. We'll try and find shelter somewhere less prone to flooding when we get out." Hiccup pulled himself onto Toothless with only a little help from the dragon and they made their way to the mouth of the cave.

Hookfang had turned around and was following Barf and Belch out of the cave when a streak of lightening suddenly burst through the clouds and struck the outside of the cliff, sending rocks falling down into the mouth of the cave. The Zippleback managed to escape just in time but the rocks quickly blocked the way for everyone else, leaving only small gaps for the water to continue pouring in.

"Great," Snotlout scoffed, "Now what?"

"Just blast it out of the way," Ruffnut grinned, anticipating the explosion.

"Yeah," Tuffnut mirrored his sister's expression, "I don't know what's happening but 'blasting it' sounds good to me."

"Oh, Gods," Hiccup sighed, "We can't 'blast it' because it could cause a cave in. We need to find another way out."

"Do we even have time for that?" Fishlegs was shivering as the water rose to waist height, "It's filling up pretty fast."

"We don't really have a choice," Hiccup shrugged as Toothless turned back towards the fire just as the water rose high enough to extinguish it, momentarily spilling them into complete darkness.

Hookfang soon took care of the lack of light as he glowed warmly for the riders to find their way. They walked for almost ten minutes before the cave suddenly opened out wider. The space stretched high above them and about thirty feet in front, then there were only walls. No other pathways opened up, not even a sliver of light pierced through from outside and the water was still rising, almost to chest height now.

"We'll have to blast through the top," Astrid shouted as she hopped onto Stormfly.

"No cheating!" Snotlout grinned, showing his teeth, "Fishface can't fly on Meatlug and you, Astrid, can't use Stormfly's attacks!"

"But this is a life or death situation!" Fishlegs squeaked.

"That's the point of the mission, duh!"

Snotlout folded his arms and smirked as Hookfang flapped his huge wings and rose to the highest point of the cave. The dragon then let out two short bursts of flames and opened up a hole large enough to fly out of, which he did after his rider took a moment to display just how superior he was. The hole also meant that the rain was now flooding into the cave, making the water rise at an even faster pace. Toothless splashed around hopelessly as he tried to keep his head above the water level.

"Okay, let's go!" Astrid flew through the hole Hookfang had created with Fishlegs' arms around her waist as he sat atop Stormfly so as not to break the rules of the mission. Meatlug followed quickly after.

Hiccup turned to the twins, one of which was holding the other under the water although in the darkness he couldn't tell who, "Do you two need a lift?"

"Nah, we're good," Ruff answered as she continued to hold her brother's head underwater. She then whistled and a moment later Barf and Belch appeared through the hole, blocking the moonlight with their heads. The Zippleback scooped up the twins and flew back out of the cave with a few brisk flaps of its wings.

"Okay, bud," Hiccup scratched his head and pulled his foot up so that he was perched on Toothless' back, out of the reach of the water, "Now what?"

The Night Fury flapped his wings a few times, spraying Hiccup with water, but it was no use. There was no way they were going to fly out of there. They tried climbing but the cave walls were too loose and the pair just ended up plunging back into the water, which was now taller than Hiccup and almost higher than Toothless' head. Just as Hiccup was starting to accept that drowning was a pretty easy way to go for a Viking, a thin rope flopped through the hole above them and Astrid's pretty face peered through.

"Someone call for a lift?"

"Oh, thank Thor!" Hiccup smiled as Toothless stood on his hind legs so that his rider could grab the rope.

Climbing it was easier said than done with only one leg and Hiccup kept slipping, burning his hands in the process. He was almost at the hole and was able to smell the wet grass outside when he looked back down at his dragon. Toothless' spines were glowing a faint blue, illuminating the water around him as he splashed and jumped awkwardly below. Something else was in the water with him, something with _teeth._


End file.
